Diamond in the Rough
by TheBlueFoxtrot A Samba
Summary: Drabbles/oneshots that are sometimes funny, sometimes insightful. Now featuring: Impromptu dancing lessons.
1. Introducing

My drabbles that are not submitted into _Ten Times Ten _will go here, and probably the rest of whatever oneshots I do from now on, including ones filled for challenges. This one came from the 'Drabble Tag' game in the YJ forum, second from the top. There's a link in my profile.

I'm gonna say it right now, and it will not be repeated for the duration of this fic series: Young Justice ain't mine. That's right_, ain't_!

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><p><strong>Pairing: <strong>Wally/Superboy **Prompt:** "This is Superboy!" :D "He can't fly..."

**Word Count: **580

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><p>They were supposed to be covert. In and out, quiet and stealthy. Batman's secret Shadow Force.<p>

And they were out in broad daylight, being mobbed by reporters after their last mission took just a wee bit longer than they planned.

"Robin, are you still working with Batman?"

"Green Girl, hey! Who are you?"

"Who's the kid in the Superman shirt?"

Among all the yelling and questions, Robin kept his arms crossed, muttering about how Batman was going to go ballistic on him. Should have kept a low profile. Somehow, he just didn't think Batman would be at all impressed with his bomb-making skills or the supposed necessity to blow up the entire warehouse.

M'gann tried her best to answer the questions and assure the media they were in no danger while a slightly singed Artemis glared them all down. It...really hadn't been a good mission for her. Aqualad went for the diplomatic approach, fielding as many questions away from whether or not they were with the Justice League.

And Wally, well…

"Hey, Mike! You're a little out of your usual beat, huh?"

Of course he knows reporters by name. He just would; it came with being the Flash's apprentice. Dealing with the media was an all too common occurrence. Kid Flash grinned for the cameras, fully at ease. They were out in the open anyway, so why not make the most of it?

"Yeah, KF, but you know how it is. So what, you're with a team now?"

"Sure what it looks like, right? Let me tell ya, it's incredible!"

"I hear you. Who are these guys then?"

"Well, everybody knows this crazy guy," Kid Flash slung an arm around the Boy Wonder, who stood stock-still, mentally freaking out, "Robin's our tech guy and general ninja master. Say hey, man!"

Robin ignored the cameras and leveled a blank look at his friend.

"You do realize how screwed we are, right? He's going to _im_plode and _ex_plode at the same time."

Kid Flash sent a quick grin towards the cameras and pushed Robin away.

"Yeah, he gets a little weird after missions. Ignore everything he says and does. This is Miss Martian, basically awesomeness incarnate. Miss M!"

"Oh, uh," she turned from her own gaggle of reporters for a moment, "Not now, W – Kid Flash."

"Right. She's busy. That guy over there's Aqualad; he runs this crazy thing, helps keep us alive. And the leprechaun over there's Artemis. She's…almost decent."

"Haha, I take it you don't like her."

"I wouldn't mind if you take _her _entirely. Oh, man, almost forgot. Yo! Big guy, get over."

Kid Flash called over to the silent teen with his arms crossed over his chest. He grudgingly walked over to Kid Flash.

"Don't tell me what to do."

"Sorry," he replied automatically, grinning widely, "Mike, this is Superboy. He can't fly!"

"Why would you say that?" Superboy asked, almost sounding offended.

"Because you can't."

"That doesn't mean you have to tell the planet," he waved a hand at the cameras. "Why don't you tell them you can't vibrate through walls?"

"Hey! I'll be able to one day."

"You can't now, but you don't hear me telling everyone."

"You just did!"

"You started it."

"Excuse me for trying to introduce you to Mike! I'm sorry."

"…Sorry too."

"It's okay. Now let's try this again. Mike, this is Superboy. He's a sensitive soul who can't fly."

Superboy glared, and they found out, at least he had heat vision.


	2. Imitation Equals Flattery

**Prompt:** "I am the night." **Characters:** Kid Flash, Batman

**Word count: **705

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><p>Kid Flash looked left then right. Then he looked again. For a full minute, he repeated this process and expected the Dark Knight to show up any second now. It wasn't like it was a farfetched idea. He was in the Batcave after all.<p>

It's not like he broke in or anything; he wasn't that stupid. However, his uncle had been the one to leave him here just because his ribs were a little bruised. And he'd dislocated his shoulder. And he'd gotten a bloody nose,butthat's only because he'd try to go through that wall.

They let Robin go. Nevermind Robin hadn't gotten a mark on him; he was two years younger than him! He hadn't even hit his teens yet. It wasn't fair!

While pout, er, brooding in the infirmary, Kid had realized something: he was in the Batcave.

He was _in_ the Batcave.

After ten minutes of full on geeking out, he'd set out to explore. The place was huge. There was stuff everywhere. Like, really cool stuff. Weapons, tech, a really big penny, a T-Rex robot, an even bigger Joker card, a puppet – he'd swear up and down its eyes followed him – but that wasn't the coolest thing.

No, it wasn't the cars; those were sweet and all, but he could outrace them. Or even the weapons or the tech; although the tech came pretty close, appealing to the science guy in him.

What really put him over and had him pinching himself was the Batman suit. Yes, he'd seen it before. It was usually on the man, when he was ninja-ing around. And while he thought his costume was outright boss…it was the Batsuit. Apparently, he had more than one. Heck, if Wally were Batman, he'd have them stored in his briefcases and behind secret panels in walls and the limo. Why he thought there was a limo, he didn't know.

Assured that he was completely alone, and the man himself wasn't lurking from the stalagmites or in the shadows, he opened the case. Slowly, he reached out to finger the material between his fingers. Eyes wide with awe, a very Robin-esque cackle escaped his lips. A moment later, he was stripped out of his uniform, mindful of his shoulder, and fully decked out in the far too large suit. It was designed to fit a muscular, fit, grown man; not a boy who hadn't even hit puberty.

That did nothing to deter Wally's enthusiasm. He zipped around the cave, climbed on top of equipment and jumped off, fended off bad guys a la Bruce Lee. However, he was careful to avoid the utility belt. Robin had told him about the booby traps.

Clambering atop the chair that stood before the biggest computer he'd ever seen in his life – there were a lot of oversized things in this cave of wonders – he jumped off, holding the cape in one hand in an attempt to imitate the Batman's classic appearance from above. In his head, he saw the thugs stumble back in terror, stuttering through their fear.

"W-who –_what_ are you?"

Lowering the cape dramatically and struggling to keep the manic grin from his face, he deepened his voice and said, "I am the night."

Then a steady, yet quiet rhythm behind him startled him so badly, he tripped in the overly long cape as he spun to the noise. Cowl askew, it blocked his vision, and he pushed it off his face. What he saw made him wish he could completely disappear in the black costume.

Robin stood next to the stone faced Dark Knight, clapping and grinning; he had the thought that he was getting a standing ovation. Flash had a fist pressed to his mouth and looked like he was trying very hard to hold something back. Occasionally, a quiet squeak or snort would escape him. Batman just stared, not glare or blink. He just looked like he was having difficulty believing he was seeing what he was seeing.

Face as red as his hair, Kid Flash struggled to his feet as swiftly as he could.

"I was just – I didn't – you were – I – uh…I'll just go...over…anywhere else right now."

Yeah. Anywhere. Like a dark corner to die in.


	3. For Kicks and Giggles

**Characters: **Black Canary and Aqualad** Prompt: **"You have ice cream the back of your neck..." "So?"

**Word Count:** 526

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><p>Black Canary was a hard working woman. Not only did she work hard for her money on the day to day; she was a super heroine. She kicked butt with the likes of Batman, Superman, the Green Lantern, Wonder Woman, the list went on. She had to put up with Oliver Freaking Queen. That alone was a trial no woman should have to endure. On top of that, she had to deal with a group of hormonal, angst-ridden teens. She'd gone through that enough with Roy. She loved him like a son, but the boy made her want to strangle him sometimes.<p>

Diana may be one bad, bad chick. But frankly, Wonder Woman had nothing on her.

So Dinah was prone to treat herself, in little ways. Mani/pedis, shopping sprees – courtesy of Mr. Queen - , spa days. Just all of that girly crap, you know. And sometimes, she just straight pigged out.

She wasn't the kind to buy all that junk that was good for her and keep it at her house. If she wanted it, she'd either have to go out and buy it, steal it from Ollie's house, or eat it from the JLA or Mount Justice. Either way, she'd earned it.

Between the two places, Mount Justice had the better treats. Maybe because the major residents were teens, and one had direct access to the funds and supplies. She didn't particularly care what it was. As long as she had a supply of choco-mint fudge on hand, how it came to be didn't matter to her.

So Dinah treated herself, in a little way, after a good session of tromping on the adolescent heroes' self-esteem. Oh, while teaching them character. Yes, getting their butts kicked taught character. It was good for them. Yes, that's what she was going with.

Seated at the island and eating a triple scoop cone of her favorite ice cream in the whole world, Dinah felt like one of the kids herself. Maybe it was because she was too focused on eating the ice cream as fast as possible before it melted all over her hands and avoiding brain freeze. It was a talent and a skill. She was so intent on the ice cream that she paid little heed to where it dripped, and somehow got a few drops onto the back of her neck.

And Kaldur'ahm just happened to be in the kitchen when she pulled her hair to one side, revealing the little mess she'd made. Unsure of what he was seeing, the Atlantean inadvertently stared. Dinah turned to look at him, mid-lick.

"Something wrong, Kal?"

"I believe you have ice cream on the back of your neck."

Her lips puckered as she swallowed.

"So? You wanna lick it off or somethin'?"

Despite his dark skin, she could swear she saw it darken in a blush. How cute.

"No, ma'am. I need to…go see…I need to go."

Dinah grinned to herself as the boy retreated, as flustered and embarrassed as she'd ever seen him. Wiping the sweetness off of her neck, she then went back to her snack. Sometimes, she just needed to treat herself.


	4. For Good Behavior

**A time and a place challenge **by** SilverxDawn**

**Prompts:** Alfred, Black Canary, Merit, Mt. Justice

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><p>While a code of conduct didn't immediately occur to anyone who thought of Batman, they – well, no. They did think of one. He won't kill. He may very well make his target pray for death while traumatizing the poor fool beyond all psychological help, but he won't kill.<p>

There was much more to the way he worked and handled himself, but that would take ages to go over. Those others are not important at the moment. Present rule to focus on: without merit there should be no reward. Therefore, if there is merit, there should be reward.

Black Canary was not aware of this particular bit of Batman protocol. She had no reason to be as she was not a part of the Bat family. She was merely one of many memebers in the Justice League, and she'd recently been put in charge of training the Young Justice. The young heroes were talented and at times a joy to teach. Other times, she was greatly reminded that they were teenagers, and they made a habit to try to patience and resolve.

Dinah knew nothing of the rule. All she knew was that there was some old man wearing a suit rummaging about the Mt. Justice kitchen. She stood stunned for a moment as he pulled bottled spices out of a leather satchel and set them on the counter in a just-so manner.

It was an amateur mistake to stand and openly gape when faced with an unknown, unexpected situation, but…how did an old man get in here?

He glanced her way as he removed the last of his supplies.

"Good evening, miss," he nodded congenially and spoke with a light British accent.

Amendment to her previous question: how did a _British _old man get in here?

Dinah soon found out that she didn't care how Alfred had gotten there. As she sipped his delicious coffee and ate the best red velvet cake she'd had since her grandmother had passed, she wondered if there was a way to get him to come to her house. She'd always wanted an in-home chef.


	5. Maybe If

Disclaimer: I used to be able to make much more clever statements of how I don't own any of the things I write for, but now they're just so...very stale and lame like this one. C'est la vie.

Orangevbnin's Collateral Damage

Prompt: _You can't save everyone._

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><p>The atmosphere in the bioship was laden with silence. Post-mission times were usually filled with congratulations and incredulous laughter. They succeeded in another job well-done and everything still had all of their body parts. That was always cause for celebration.<p>

Someone had died this time though. No one felt it was right to give out pats on the back.

No one talked to anyone else. No one _looked_ at anyone else. Aqualad sat in a position that one could easily think was a prayer. The others held themselves solemnly. Robin was cluthing a batarang in his hands so tight his fists shook. Kid Flash sat perfectly still; he barely looked like he was breathing. Superboy stared straight ahead, scowling at everything. Miss Martian sat at her place, directing the ship to base with tears standing in her eyes.

Artemis sat with her knees drawn up in her chair, and her arms wrapped tightly around them. Out of all of them, she was the most affected. _She _was the one that saw it. _She _was the one who'd ultimately failed to save her. It was her fault.

It was all her fault.

She had been the one to mess up, and someone had died because of it. If she'd just stopped trying to talk to him out of it... That had been so stupid! Trying to reason with that man wasn't possible. Appealing to any good in him was a waste. There was no good to be found.

"Artemis."

She blinked and the visions that would haunt her dreams were pushed aside for now. Wally was in front of her, an unreadable look on his face.

"We're back."

She looked past him and saw the others disappearing through the doorway of the ship. No dbout, they were headed to the cave to report to Batman about the mission. Protocal and all that. That went with being heroes, being soldiers. That's what they were, right?

Wally put a hand on her shoulder, and she realized that look was concern.

"Are you all right?"

Idiot. Of course she wasn't all right. What a stupid question. In fact, she should shake off his comforting hand, tell him exactly what kind of moron he was, and punch him in the face if for no other reason so he'd stop looking at her like that.

She nodded and said, "No. I mean, uh, n – yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Don't I look fine?"

"No. You…you look like you're going to cry."

"Yeah? Well…yeah."

He stood there, looking at her. What must he be thinking? That she was a poser. That Roy wouldn't have let it happen. That she was a waste. If she couldn't do her job, what the hell was she doing here? What was the point, if she couldn't save one person?

Shaking those thoughts off, Artemis stood abruptly.

"We should go."

She moved to sling her bow across her back but paused. Her hand – no, her entire body was shaking. Stifling a groan, she covered her eyes with her hands and took a deep, shuddering breath.

"Artemis?"

She bit her lip and shook her head.

No. No, no, no. Not yet. Just wait. Why can't you just wait? Why won't you stop? Just please _stop._

"_Stop!"_

_She begged him._

"_Let her go free. You have no reason to kill her!"_

_He stared at her, and the blade glinted at the woman's neck. He didn't move, and the woman didn't breathe. Deep blue eyes filled with tears and terror stared at her, begging her to help._

"_You have a choice," he said, and she forced her eyes to meet his. "You can either kill me and save her, or you can keep whining and watch her die."_

"_Stop it!" she leveled the bow for his head. Her arrow supply had dwindled Enough games, enough tests!"_

"_Nothing short of a kill shot is gonna save her. A life for a life, Artemis. Nothing comes free, remember? Her life or mine. Pick one."_

_Her arms were starting to burn from holding the bow and string. Choose? She couldn't. The woman was innocent. She didn't deserve to die. But him? After all of his crimes and terrible things he'd done, law and justice would say he did. But _him_? She couldn't do it. _

_Maybe if she didn't use to wait for this man to come home. Maybe if she didn't remember how much she used to adore him. Maybe if he didn't share the same eyes as her. She saw those eyes narrow through the slits in his mask._

"_You still don't get it. You're such a waste."_

"_Dad, please! Don't do it!"_

_The blade flashed and –_

"It's my fault."

Wally was hugging her. She was keeping her eyes closed tight, and the tears still leaked out of her eyes, and she was having a minor breakdown and _this_ close to hyperventilating, and Freaking Wally was hugging her.

This was officially the weirdest day of her life.

"No, it's not."

He hugged her tighter and effectively cut off the possibility hyperventilating by nearly crushing the air out of her.

"You weren't there," she moaned pitifully. "You don't know."

"I know that you would have never let that happen if you could stop it. I know you tried."

"It wasn't enough," she pushed away from him and sank down to her knees. Standing was too much effort. "She's dead, Wally, and I didn't stop it."

No quick answer to that one. But there was no answer. It _hadn't _been enough, and she was _dead_, and nothing would change that. Then that hand was back on her shoulder, and he was sitting next to her.

"Un – Flash said something once. I think it was supposed to be like a joke or something, but sometimes they fall pretty flat. He said that you knew you arrived in the big leagues when the bodies start stacking up. It was pretty morbid, but…that's the real deal now. That's what we're facing. Sometimes, we're not gonna get everybody, and people are going to die."

She looked at him, more serious than he'd ever been. A long moment passed as she let those words sink in. He was trying to help, really, but she still kept _seeing _it and knowing that she could have stopped it. He didn't know…it really _was _her fault.

Maybe she would _have _to do it. Maybe next time, it would be a choice between her and her team's lives and his. Would he make her do that? Yes. Yes, he would. And she thought, feeling how she felt right now with this incredible guilt compressing the air out of the room, that she just might do it. After feeling this, her anger at him and resent for always playing around with her, like she was just some fool…she could almost think that perhaps she would be happy to be rid of him.

But that wasn't true. She didn't want that. She didn't want to _be _like him. She wanted him to stop.

"Is this your way of telling me to suck it up?"

"No. I think that…you _should_ let it get to you. When you stop caring, you shouldn't be doing this anymore. It hasn't happened to me yet, so I'm just talking. I mean, that's what I do, right? But if you're still…like _this_ in a week, I'm going to intervene by becoming the most annoying creature you've ever seen."

"You mean you haven't been trying all this time already?"

"There we go. There are the claws."

She rolled her eyes at that and wiped the water from her face.

"You ready?"

"Nope. But I can't sit here all night, now can I?"

He stood and offered her a hand up. She took it then stalled for a few short moments by fussing with her bow and looking around for anything she could possibly be forgetting. After a moment, she cast a sideways look his way.

"Wally?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

With a small smile on his face, he shrugged it off.

"Forget about it. We're a team after all. Besides, it was obvious you were giving yourself grief over it, and that's what I do."

"Can't have that. That would take away your entire usefulness to the team."

"Yup. You're definitely gonna make a full recovery."

"And Wally? _That _didn't happen."

"What didn't?" he asked with a wink that got the smallest smile from her.

Wally being nice without having his memory wiped? Yep. _Definitely _the weirdest day ever. No doubt, there would be more weirdness and worst days. Nothing would ever make her forget how terrible this entire thing was. She only hoped next time – no. Next time, she _would _stop it from happening again, no matter what or who. And if – _if_ – she didn't, she was glad she had this team.

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><p><strong>I hate this. Hate it. Hate hate HATE it. Hate is a weird word. Hominy is a funny one.<strong>


	6. Do You Believe?

Disclaimer: What? Mine? Oh, you silly!

A little thing I'm doing, featuring five head fanon facts about each of the YJ members. This is one.

Part One of Five Things About: Robin

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><p>Before, when he'd been Dick Grayson, the Flying Robin of his family's circus, he'd known quite a few characters. Palm readers and magicians and the like were must-haves of any proper circus. They had the best, in his humble opinion. They'd showed the trick to some of their performances, but there were a few they'd left a mystery, and he'd never been able to figure them out. Granted, he'd been nine, but a very brainy, inquisitive nine.<p>

And there were some things that there simply wasn't an explanation for. The Madam Ronan, old enough to be his grandmother and had acted like it, had been one of them. She was of the typical Peer-into-the-crystal-ball psychic. She'd look at a man and know what he did for a living, how long he'd been married, where he was raised, anything. Mostly, that had been her 'mentalising' people, and child or not, it was impressive.

But there had been times, when she'd speak to him and look at him.

"Little Robin," she'd say and hug him, "you poor little dear. Oh, you little dear. But what wonderful things you'll do someday! Remember, little Robin, there's always good with the bad. Always look for the good."

She'd always say things like that and then hand him a cookie she'd baked and then _just_ one more. He didn't even think of that until months after it happened. After he'd become Dick Grayson, ward of Bruce Wayne and everything had changed.

He never knew what had happened to Madam Ronan after that. He'd been able to keep track of everyone else, but she'd just disappeared. After he met Zatanna, Doctor Fate, and other mystics, he began to wonder if she'd been more than just one awesome old lady.


	7. Never Scared

Part Two of Five Things About: Robin

Robin had never been afraid of the dark. The only things in the dark were things that were there in the light. If anything, he'd been the type of kid to hide in the dark behind the lion cages then jump out and scare the crud out of unfortunate passersby.

There were, in fact, few things he was actually afraid of, things he had a right to fear. Heights should be number one, all things considered. Maybe guns and knives too. But he couldn't bring himself to be scared of heights. He couldn't live fully grounded just because of…of what happened to _them._ The guns weren't an issue because if the goon holding it had sucky aim, no worries. Knives were a cake-walk to handle with his training.

If there was one thing that he should be utterly terrified of, it should be clowns. He isn't though. Not at all. He doesn't go to McDonald's or carnivals or things like that because those places are so last year. He wasn't scared. He was cautious and informed.

Because he knew, that beneath those painted smiles beat the sadistic heart of a mad man eager to knock him out, use him to lure his father into a death trap, and torture him to death.

He wasn't scared. He was smart.

…


	8. This Is Why

Part Three of Five Things About: Robin

It was a little surprising to find out Robin's choice of music. Kaldur had been in the recreation room, looking over a series of briefs of pervious missions on a laptop. Megan hummed an odd tune that seemed to have no rhythm, perhaps a Marsian song, while preparing to…create something meant to be food, and Artemis sat by supervising.

Suddenly, the speaker system crackled to life, he looked at Megan at Artemis, who looked back, confused.

"Do you know what –"

He was cut off by the booming bass, and Robin who swaggered into the room, head down, and swaying to the beat. Conner trailed behind him, like a normal person and leaned against the door frame to watch the show.

"I'm hot 'cause I'm fly," Robin flicked his hands and slid toward the door. "You ain't 'cause you're not," he pointed at Conner. This is why, this is why I'm hot."

Robin actually moon-walked away a few steps before back-flipping onto the coffee table.

"This is why I'm hot," he brushed imaginary dust from his shoulder, and the dance flowed on. "I don't gotta rap. I can sell a mill' sayin' nothin' on the track. I represent New York," deuces, "I got it in my blood. Some haters say we lost it so I'm gonna bring it back. I love the dirty, dir-"

The music abruptly cut off, catching Robin mid pop-lock. Next to an amused-looking Superboy stood the ever stoic Batman, holding up the remote to the sound system.

"What did we discuss?"

The boy sank down onto the table, legs crossed Indian-style.

"Not to abuse the _Bat Cave's_ sound system."

"Robin."

"Yeah?"

"_No._"

Having said his piece, Batman turned and walked away. Robin huffed and crossed his arms.

"So totally _not_ aster."


	9. Shall We?

Part Four of Five Things About: Robin

Artemis was annoyed. Robin could tell from the moment she'd stalked into the garage, muttering under her breath. He was just astute like that. He wasn't going to get involved though. He'd seen how badly that went for Bruce with the women in his life. So he pretended he that he saw nothing and went back to updating the computer board of his R Cycle.

"Ugh! This _so_ sucks!"

Robin stifled a sigh. He was about to get involved. It wasn't like he could help himself. Saving the day was what he did, and what kind of hero would he be if he didn't help out a friend in distress? Who also happened to be a damsel – technically; he couldn't _not _help. Setting aside his tools, Robin twisted around to face Artemis with his back against the bike and crossed his arms.

"What's up, Arty?"

"My mom's forcing me to be in this stupid wedding for one of my aunt's and she's got it in her head that I have to know how to waltz! Where they do that at?" Artemis stood with her hands on her hips after that little rant. Then she whirled on Robin. "Did you just call me _Arty_?"

Rather than answer, Robin smirked.

"Waltzing's not that big of a deal. It's actually pretty easy."

She arched a brow.

"You waltz? Why? That part of the official Bat training?"

"Yes. Reasons. No. Do you want me to show you?"

…

"Stop trying to lead me. You're the girl, I'm the guy, you follow me."

"That is so sexist."

"It's the _waltz_. What do you expect?"

"Whatever. I got the hang of it enough. I can lead."

"Oh, yeah. Five minutes and suddenly you're an expert. Not like you haven't stepped on my feet eight times."

"I did not."

"So I guess I just imagined my toes being squashed."

"And do we really have to be this close or is this you trying to be smooth?"

"Okay, one. I don't have to _try _to be smooth. I'm the definition of smooth. And if I were trying to run game with you, you wouldn't have to ask."

"Is that a fact?"

"It is at that. And _that_ is a part of the Bat training."

He was sure Artemis wasn't expecting the dip, but she refrained from squeaking. The look of shock on her face was exaggerated enough to be comical, and Robin couldn't deny he was enjoying messing with her. So with her arms around his neck, he couldn't resist leaning closer, his face inches from hers, and it was all he could do to not laugh.

"Still need to ask?"

"Ahem."

They both looked toward the doorway and saw Kaldur standing there with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Am I interrupting something?"

"This isn't what it looks like!" Artemis blurted and struggled to stand upright. Robin helped her, and she immediately stood away from him. "I just needed – I mean, we were…He was teaching me how to waltz and uh..."

Wow. He'd never seen Artemis turn that red before. It really clashed with her costume.

"Of course, you do not need to explain anything to me. As long as your relationship does not affect team missions then –"

"We're not in a relationship! He's a kid, for crying out loud. I am not a cradle robber."

"Hey!"

"Oh, certainly, Artemis. Whatever you say."

With a frustrated roar, Artemis stomped away from Robin and past Kaldur, out the door.

Robin looked Kaldur's gaze and smirked.

"Kal…you're evil, man."

"I do not know what you mean," his answering grin belied his innocent words.


End file.
